Bay Area COVID-19 Rules Tracker

Our Bay Area COVID-19 Rules Tracker summarizes the face-masking requirements currently in effect around the San Francisco Bay Area that apply to business and office settings. Though many of the Bay Area counties have adopted similar or identical masking and isolation/quarantine rules, there are some key differences between the requirements in place in each county. This chart will be updated periodically as local rules and conditions evolve.

Statewide health requirements continue to operate in all counties in California. These include statewide mask mandates, which require masks to be worn by all persons in certain high-risk settings, and by all unvaccinated persons in all indoor public settings (whether that setting is open to the general public or just to a limited group, such as an office workplace). In addition, statewide rules promulgated by Cal/OSHA require employers to screen workplace personnel for COVID symptoms prior to entry into the workplace.

Beginning the week of October 11, 2021, some Bay Area counties have issued limited carve-outs to their mask mandates for certain indoor settings where all persons present are fully vaccinated, and where certain other safety criteria are met. This summary chart clarifies which counties have taken this step, and what conditions must be met for the exemption to apply. Furthermore, certain Bay Area counties have begun to publish criteria under which local masking mandates will be fully rescinded. These criteria require that local COVID-19 case numbers and hospitalizations remain below set levels, and that a certain percentage of the county’s total population has been fully vaccinated. The publication of these criteria will make it easier for resident and businesses in the Bay Area to understand what factors are driving local public health decisions, and to know when they can expect further loosening of local mask mandates and other restrictions.